


lost in the dark, but i'll be with you

by belatedwannable



Category: Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: Basquiat AU, Card Games, First Meetings, M/M, Revolution, Strangers to Lovers, loosely inspired by Les Mis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-13 01:47:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29394306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/belatedwannable/pseuds/belatedwannable
Summary: A supply run under the city gives Hyunggu time to reflect on the paths and people that brought him there.
Relationships: Adachi Yuto/Jung Wooseok, Kang Hyunggu | Kino/Ko Shinwon
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	lost in the dark, but i'll be with you

_ It’s May 11. Why was that important? _ These are the thoughts Hyunggu focuses on as he runs, trying to drown out the stench in his nostrils. 

_ Something’s happening today and I was supposed to be there. What is it? _ He tries his best to imagine the time before he was running through the sewers beneath the city streets, taking part in a revolution against corrupt powers.

He turns a corner and the answer finally hits him.  _ A garden party. I was invited to Lady Kim’s garden party. Very exclusive, only twenty guests. _ Hyunggu smiles to himself. If only Lady Kim could see him now, his clothes in tatters, a satchel slung over his shoulder full of bandages and food. She probably wouldn’t recognize him, though she could probably smell him from a mile away.

Nobody should be down here and that’s precisely what they’re counting on as they bring supplies back to camp. Hyunggu shouldn’t be on this side. This isn’t the side of history he was born into, but love changed everything. 

Love...more like a rivalry at the tavern two months ago. Those two months seemed like a lifetime ago. A lifetime that Hyunggu recalls as his fingers find the locket he wears around his neck. There’s a single newspaper scrap in it, the only photograph of the one he loves.

Hyunggu, a noble boy, raised in the highest of society, grew up on card games, complete with frivolous bets. But he was smart. Some said that he was too smart for his own good, and he was an excellent card-player. Equal parts caution and risk. It was only a matter of time before he grew bored of testing his wits against the same people year after year. He knew all their tells. He even knew the ways they would attempt to cheat. He found much better opponents at the local tavern.

Hyunggu would sneak out at night to play a few rounds, reveling in the unpredictable nature of the people he saw as “common folk”. Even with the increased challenge, he still managed to win the majority of the games. Until a young man with curly brown hair and an impish grin sat down at his table. 

The first time Hyunggu lost, he was surprised, but laughed it off as beginner’s luck. The fourth time Hyunggu lost, he was feeling quite sensitive. And by the seventh time, his temper began to flare. 

“Relax,” the newcomer soothed, “your money is going to a worthy cause.”

“And what cause is that?” Hyunggu demanded.

“It is the price of freedom.” The cryptic answer did little to quell Hyunggu’s anger, but he chose instead to focus on his own curiosity. He had heard rumors, little more than whispers behind closed doors, but he didn’t think they could be true. After all, this was the way it had always been. 

“Do you mean…” Hyunggu trailed off, letting the man insert whatever he wanted into the blank space.

“Yes, I mean the revolution. I will sacrifice anything, even my life, to see this through.”

What Hyunggu wanted to say in that moment was that the stranger looked beautiful, lit by the tavern lamps, his eyes aglow with a passion that Hyunggu had never before seen. He was used to listless people stirring up petty feuds and fussing over trifles. This fervor was new and it made Hyunggu’s heart beat a little faster.

“What’s your name? And when could I see you again?” Hyunggu feels as if his destiny is nearby, that he is at a crossroads and he must make sure this is not their last encounter.

“Shinwon. And you are?”

“Kang Hyunggu.” The formal introduction is out of his mouth before he can think twice. 

Shinwon’s eyebrow raises. “And what does a noble’s son want with a revolutionary mind like myself?”

“I...I don’t know what to think about such a movement and I want to learn more.”

“I see. Meet me at the shoe shop on the corner by the bakery. We can talk more there. I must be off. Goodnight! And thank you for your generous gift to the movement!”

And with a wink, he was gone.

Flash forward two weeks and Hyunggu sat shivering beside a campfire. Shinwon had to take care of some business and had left Hyunggu in the company of his friends and co-revolutionaries, Wooseok and Yuto. Their love ran far deeper than the movement, stretching back years to when they were both schoolchildren. 

The hour was late and Yuto had fallen asleep, his head on Wooseok’s lap. Wooseok’s long fingers carded through his hair as Hyunggu watched, slightly envious of their blatant affection. 

“How did you know?” Hyunggu blurts out the question as suddenly as it springs into his mind.

Wooseok looks up at him. “Know what?”

“How did you know that you wanted to join the revolution too?”

“Ah,” Wooseok closes his eyes in contemplation for a moment before opening his eyes and looking down at Yuto. “That was an easy choice for me, the easiest I’ve ever made. You see, I would have followed anywhere he asked. But the way I knew that this movement was the most important choice he ever made was that he didn’t ask me to follow. He knew I had to choose it for myself. And so I did. I chose this and I chose him. And I have never once regretted it.”

He continued, “Love doesn’t mean that you follow blindly in another’s path, but it can give you a pull or a push in the right direction. It can be a trustworthy guide and I embraced where it led. Why do you ask?”

Hyuggu looks around, trying to make sure the object of his affection was nowhere within earshot. “I think I love Shinwon and I think he’s led me to love this cause. I just wanted to make sure I was in this for the right reasons.”

“Love adds,” Wooseok muses, in his last bit of wisdom for the night. “It adds depth and beauty and meaning. It is not an invalid reason for any choice.”

Hyunggu sighs and meets Wooseok’s firelit eyes. “Then, I’m officially a revolutionary.”

“Welcome to the right side of history.”

And now, it’s the present and the right side of history stinks to high heaven, but Hyunggu wouldn’t trade this moment for the world. 

He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about the million other love stories they could have had in other universes. He’s thought about courtship dances and tailor shops and raucous parties. He’s fantasized about soaking up a life of luxury together, swimming in some distant sea and curling up on a pillowy-soft bed. They’d bicker over their dinner menus and Hyunggu would get to be ravished in velvet and lace. 

But that’s not their life. That’s not their story. Their story is the way Shinwon takes Hyunggu’s hand as they navigate the underbelly of the city. How Hyunggu thinks that even if his entire world was shrouded in darkness and foul smells for the rest of his life, he would be at peace if Shinwon were there with him, holding his hand, being his guide. Even if they were lost in the darkness, they’d still be together. And that was enough. It would always be enough.

**Author's Note:**

> Author’s Note: This AU is what would happen if Les Mis and Basquiat had a baby. The “Bring Him Home” vibes are so strong in this, but the actual inspiration was my wonderful girlfriend prompting me with Kino's song, ["Poison"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxi0iWfrfNM), and I'm so grateful to her for sparking this! Also, I didn't have a particular revolution or era in mind as I wrote, so this is absolutely not meant to depict any historical events.
> 
> You can find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/belatedwannable) and [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/belatedwannable). I welcome comments and conversations!


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